Sitting at the side of the road...........

h2ocooler · Unread post by **h2ocooler** » 30 Jul 2010, 16:06

Well here I am, sitting at the side of the road with a nice strip of metal in my hand waiting for the RAC tow truck.......

I WAS going to Wales to collect a caravan, then pulled onto the bagshot road from the M3 and what a racket, crank pulley was trying to escape, a rather long

piece of metal wedged by it and the pulley was wobbling all over the place, guessing it had been going for a while as there had been a very light rattle for ages.
Oh well, new one ordered from my local Citroen dealer for tomorrow and will try again sunday for the caravan........
Rob

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 30 Jul 2010, 16:16

shame Rob

better at bagshot than almost making it I guess.. hope the truck is swift.. I have had 3 consecutive 10 hour waits for the xantia the last three times I have called the aa.. all times within an hour from home

Unread post by **myglaren** » 30 Jul 2010, 16:20

Commiserations Rob. Hope the AA man shows up soon

h2ocooler · Unread post by **h2ocooler** » 30 Jul 2010, 16:24

Wow that was quick, he will be here in 5 mins

Unread post by **Peter.N.** » 30 Jul 2010, 18:33

We don't have a flying pigs smiley do we?

Homer · Unread post by **Homer** » 30 Jul 2010, 18:40

jgra1 wrote: better at bagshot than almost making it I guess.. hope the truck is swift.. I have had 3 consecutive 10 hour waits for the xantia the last three times I have called the aa.. all times within an hour from home

Ouch.

I ditched the AA many years ago after twice letting me down.

The first time was a snapped cambelt on a BX, "my cambelt has snapped, I'll need a flatbed" I told them. 20 mins later the AA guy arrives in an Escort van, "your cambelt has snapped, you'll need a flatbed" he said. "that's what I said" I said. 4 hrs later the flatbed turns up.

The second time I had a broken suspension pipe on the BX, on a Sunday, in the Peak district. "I'll need a flatbed" I told them. 20 mins later the AA guy arrives in an Escort van, "you'll need a flatbed" he said. "that's what I said" I said. 6 hrs later the flatbed turns up.... best bit is, it was a National Breakdown truck.

Apparently the guy in the van counted as attending within the specified timescale.

Unread post by **Peter.N.** » 30 Jul 2010, 19:38

That has been the usual scenario with me, although I havn't had an XM breakdown in the last five or six years.

There was one useful period when a had a PMR radio in the car, on the same frequency as a recovery firm in Devon, when they heard my wife calling me they phoned and knowing what the problem was, a broken crankshaft! I told them and they managed to get a flatbed out to her straight away.

Having belonged to the AA for over 50 years and recieved my leather bound atlas and free home start, I thought I would stay with them.

Peter

h2ocooler · Unread post by **h2ocooler** » 30 Jul 2010, 20:02

Well Im back.
The RAC patrol was with in with in 10 mins of my first call and the Truck was there less than 30 mins later.
The patrol driver didn't even look at it after I handed him the metal strip from it.
Car is now outside with the offending item removed ready for the new one first thing in the morning.

It had totally seperated, only the metal lugs on the outside face of the inner part were making the outer turn, it did make one hell of a rattle

New one from the Dealers is £105 AND its in stock, found one on ebay for £65 but it would cost me £40 in petrol to go and get it.. plus the 3 hour return trip.....

Rob

wheeler · Unread post by **wheeler** » 30 Jul 2010, 21:09

Homer wrote:
jgra1 wrote: better at bagshot than almost making it I guess.. hope the truck is swift.. I have had 3 consecutive 10 hour waits for the xantia the last three times I have called the aa.. all times within an hour from home
Ouch.

I ditched the AA many years ago after twice letting me down.

The first time was a snapped cambelt on a BX, "my cambelt has snapped, I'll need a flatbed" I told them. 20 mins later the AA guy arrives in an Escort van, "your cambelt has snapped, you'll need a flatbed" he said. "that's what I said" I said. 4 hrs later the flatbed turns up.

The second time I had a broken suspension pipe on the BX, on a Sunday, in the Peak district. "I'll need a flatbed" I told them. 20 mins later the AA guy arrives in an Escort van, "you'll need a flatbed" he said. "that's what I said" I said. 6 hrs later the flatbed turns up.... best bit is, it was a National Breakdown truck.

How many times do you think people ask for direct recoveries & it turns out it's not what the person says it is, people thinking wheel bearings have colapsed when it's actually loose wheel bolts etc, people filling thier diesel cars up with 30 litres of unleaded & thinking the engines knackered because its knocking its head in.
Some naughty people even lie about faults to get cars transported 400 miles. The guys that drive the flatbeds are generally not mechanics but HGV divers & just transport cars (well for the AA & RAC anyway) so they dont check out faults or do repairs so they will nearly always send out a roadside patrol to check & possibly repair the fault first.

Unread post by **Peter.N.** » 30 Jul 2010, 22:38

Slightly off subject, but does anyone know of a breakdown company who will recover an accident damaged car? I phoned the AA when my wife wrote the XM off after 40 years of no claims and they were not interested, about six months later I was involved in an accident, although I was able to drive mine. That is the only reason I would consider changing.

Peter

red_dwarfers · Unread post by **red_dwarfers** » 30 Jul 2010, 22:38

I bought my new crankshaft pulley from GSF, around £70 IIRC.

andmcit · Unread post by **andmcit** » 30 Jul 2010, 22:38

...Watching the time roll away
Ooo, I'm just sittin' on the side of the road
Wastin' time

Look like nothing's gonna work
and everything'll still remain this way
I can't do what ten people tell me to do
So I guess I'll retain this C5

Sittin here hangin on my phone
And the helplessness won't leave me alone
It's two hundred thousand miles roamed
Just to strand me here away from home

Sitting on the side of the road...

red_dwarfers · Unread post by **red_dwarfers** » 30 Jul 2010, 22:52

Very good Andrew

h2ocooler · Unread post by **h2ocooler** » 30 Jul 2010, 23:09

andmcit wrote:...Watching the time roll away
Ooo, I'm just sittin' on the side of the road
Wastin' time

Look like nothing's gonna work
and everything'll still remain this way
I can't do what ten people tell me to do
So I guess I'll retain this C5

Sittin here hangin on my phone
And the helplessness won't leave me alone
It's two hundred thousand miles roamed
Just to strand me here away from home

Sitting on the side of the road...

red_dwarfers, trouble is I need the car on the road ASAP, need it to collect a caravan over the weekend, I did look at GSF (while i was at he side of the road) but would have been next week for delivery.

Homer · Unread post by **Homer** » 31 Jul 2010, 10:08

wheeler wrote: How many times do you think people ask for direct recoveries & it turns out it's not what the person says it is, people thinking wheel bearings have colapsed when it's actually loose wheel bolts etc, people filling thier diesel cars up with 30 litres of unleaded & thinking the engines knackered because its knocking its head in.
Some naughty people even lie about faults to get cars transported 400 miles. The guys that drive the flatbeds are generally not mechanics but HGV divers & just transport cars (well for the AA & RAC anyway) so they dont check out faults or do repairs so they will nearly always send out a roadside patrol to check & possibly repair the fault first.

That would be fine if it didn't take six flippin hours for them to turn up. Fact is they use the man in a van (and I wouldn't even call them mechanics) as an excuse to say they always get to you within x minutes.

I'm with International breakdown now, the couple of times I've (well my wife actually) used them they've sent a recovery truck with a mechanic, even for a broken wiper arm.

Funny how they can manage it eh?